User Management - moderators and permissions

The "moderators" section of your user management tools is where you can add new moderators, remove existing moderators, and update the permissions of the members of your community’s mod team.

As a community grows and changes, so do the tasks involved in moderating. Finding a solid team of moderators who are passionate about your community can help it thrive. If you’re ready to grow your mod team, a good first step is to look to your existing community for active and knowledgeable people you trust. You might consider making an announcement in your subreddit that you're looking for new moderators. You can also look to communities like r/needamod, but make sure you check a prospective mod’s account history before making a decision to add them to your team.

Adding a moderator

To invite a new mod, click “moderators” in your user mod tool menu. Select "invite moderators," enter their username, select the permissions they will need, and click the "invite" button. They will then receive a message letting them know that they have been invited to moderate your community, but they will have to accept the invitation before being added to your list of mods. Be sure to get familiar with the permissions (outlined later in this article) before adding new mods.

Please note that to invite a new moderator, you must first have full permissions as a mod of the community you are inviting them to.

Removing a moderator

If you are above another moderator in the list of mods and have the correct permissions, you will have the ability to remove that moderator. To do this, look for the list of moderators you can edit at the bottom of the moderators page. This list will include your own account and the accounts of any moderators below you.

To remove a mod, you click on the pencil icon on the far right (as shown below) and click "remove."

The remove option can be useful if you have moderators who are no longer active on the site or in your community. If you have a team of moderators, consulting as a team before making decisions on removals is generally a good practice to follow.

If you do not see a mod in the list of moderators you can edit, you do not have the correct permissions or ranking in the moderator list to remove them.

Moderator permissions

Any moderator will be able to view their community’s traffic stats and the moderation log, even if they have been granted no permissions. The tools and level of access available for each individual permission are listed below.

full permissions

Only moderators with full permissions will be able to add new moderators, edit permissions for mods below them in the mod list, and remove mods below them. They will also have full access to all of the moderation tools.

access

This permission is related to a moderator’s ability to control who has access to the community. (Note: To have the ability to mute users in mod mail, they will also need the "mail" permission.)

Moderators with “access” permissions will be able to:

modify the list of approved submitters

ban users

view traffic stats - (all mods)

view mod log - (all mods)

chat config

The chat config permission is related to a moderator’s ability to set up and maintain chat rooms for the community.

The config permission is necessary for a mod to change the look and feel of a community. It (along with wiki permission) is also necessary to set and modify rules for AutoModerator.

Moderators with “config” permissions will be able to:

access community settings

access customize appearance

upload emojis

edit the stylesheet

update the post requirements

update the subreddit rules

access AutoModerator (if you also have wiki permission)

view the traffic stats - (all mods)

view the mod log - (all mods)

flair

The flair permission enables a moderator to modify flair for your community.

Moderators with “flair” permissions will be able to:

edit user and post flair

view the traffic stats - (all mods)

view the mod log - (all mods)

mail

The mail permission gives a mod the ability to view and respond to requests in moderator mail. (To have the ability to mute users, they will also need the "access" permission.)

Moderators with “mail” permissions will be able to:

access and respond to mod mail

view the traffic stats - (all mods)

view the mod log - (all mods)

posts

The posts permission focuses on access to tools related to managing the content in your community, from making announcement posts and accessing all your community’s queues to taking mod actions on posts and comments. Before giving a mod this permission, you should be sure you’re comfortable with them having the ability to take these actions and speak officially for your mod team.

Moderators with “posts” permissions will be able to:

access the mod queue

access the spam queue

access the reports queue

access the edited queue

access the unmoderated posts queue

create and edit collections and events

add/edit removal reasons

take mod actions on posts, including:

label content as “spam”

remove posts and comments

approve posts and comments

ignore reports

mod distinguish their posts and comments

“sticky” a post using the “make announcement” button

mark a post as NSFW

mark a post as a spoiler

set a suggested comment sort for your community (i.e., Best, New, Controversial, Old, Q&A, or Live)

set a post to “contest mode”

view the traffic stats - (all mods)

view the mod log - (all mods)

wiki

This permission enables a mod to modify your community’s wiki page. It (along with config permission) is also necessary to set and modify rules for AutoModerator.